'If they did their job, Jo would still be alive' - friend of murdered Auckland woman says death was preventable

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A former policeman and friend of slain Auckland mother Jo Pert says he's convinced she would still be alive today if police had done their job properly.

Tevito Filo was found not guilty of murdering Jo Pert in Remuera by reason of insanity. He was spoken with by officers the day before the attack.
Source: 1 NEWS

The man, who did not want his name published, laid a complaint with the Independent Police Conduct Authority about the actions of officers when they pulled killer Tevita Filo over the night before Ms Pert's death.

A knife was found in the car and Filo was acting "weird". The former cop says taking Filo into custody at that stage should have been a "no-brainer".

"Had that occurred the whole chain of events would be different," he said.

Ms Pert was killed while she was out jogging in the Auckland suburb of Remuera in January last year.

Police have accepted the findings of the report but will not be changing any procedures as a result, a stance which the complainant calls arrogant.

"I'm extremely disappointed that despite the findings police continue to deny that their processes need looking at. Someone's died here for goodness sake," he said.

"I've no doubt if they did their job properly, Jo would be alive."

The Independent Police Conduct Authority has said while there should have been further enquiries by police when dealing with Filo, there was not a link between the actions of police and Ms Pert's death.

Counties Manukau District Commander Superintendent Jill Rogers said in a statement, "The officers questioned Filo at length and checked the police system for further information. He explained that he had the knife for his own protection."

Source: 1 NEWS

"There were no alerts that Filo was wanted and there were no alerts that he had any mental health issues, or posed a danger to the public."

"The officers used their discretion, confiscated the knife and issued Filo with a roadside warning."

She said police acknowledge the authority's findings, and the vehicle Filo was using was linked to the theft of a loaf of bread.

"In this roadside stop, our staff had to make a decision based on one interaction with Filo. They could not have foreseen what was going to happen."

"It is natural to try and rationalise what he did, but we now know that Mr Tevita Filo was a very unwell man," Supt. Rogers said,

Police have gone through a thorough review into the incident.

"We recognise that this has been a traumatic experience, not only for Jo Pert's family and friends but for the other victims he encountered."